The Voice Box

London Heathrow Terminal 5 The opening of Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport yesterday reminds us how easily grand schemes can go wrong. The boast, since it was formerly opened by The Queen about a month ago, that this was to be the most advanced terminal in the world seemed quite hollow. And the opening chaos which followed, probably caught most of the general public by surprise. The truth is, whatever the pretensions of T5, it will probably suffer the well documented failures, just like any other Terminal. They are probably banking on the the grand food hall's elegant design, the highbrow restaurants, and the shopping arcades, to keep the travellers occupied even when things go wrong. Even if these elements do offer better service than at the other terminals, no one should seriously believe that this will make any difference to the airline's reputation. Remember this is a very unique situation where an airline, British Airways, has a terminal all for itself. Yet, when it gets it ...

The War Rumbles On It is four years since The US and the so-called coalition forces entered Iraq, on the their Operation Freedom campaign. The drama is still being played out, orchestrated by the US president and his team. Tony Blair has departed, leaving the newcomer, Mr. Brown, to resolve the dire predicament in which the British army now finds itself in Basra. Meanwhile in Baghdad there is a new surge. Well I say a new surge, because that is the way it is being described in the US. An additional number of troops which will somehow, rather miraculously turn things around. And it must be working, if you listen to the voices of the Republicans. And yet we know, nothing can be further from the truth. For the Iraqis who remain, life in the country has become a treadmill. The killings , the intimidation, the circular motions of ethnic strife, not mention ethnic cleansing; the truth is there is no end to their suffering. Yet their voices are never heard above the din and carnage which has ...

Mr. Brown Goes to Washington After a month of the being the new Prime Minister of the UK, Mr Brown is off to Washington to hold talks with President Bush. The meeting is not unexpected. After having such a cosy relationship with Tony Blair, it will come as no surprise that both political leaders will make a great effort to at least pretend all is well. Therefore, a lot is expected from Mr. Brown on his first official visit as Prime Minister of the UK. So far on this side of the Atlantic, the media have offered conflicting opinions of the kind of stance that Gordon Brown will take when he meets George Bush. Some are quite confident the that he will reaffirm and cement the UK special relationship with America. Others are not so sure. Many believe that the time has come for some plain talking with Mr. Bush, and emphasised that Gordon is in a good position to offer it. British troops are still in Basra, and the public is hoping they will be brought home soon. But the big question is will t...

Tony Blair is Leaving After months, or even years, of hearing about the departure of Tony Blair as Prime Minister of the UK, the event is finally going to take place. Mr. Blair has now named his date, and by the end of the month we will have a new Prime Minister. this manoeuvre may be difficult for outsiders to understand. But it has to be noted that in this country, the selection of the new prime minister will be done by the Labour members, elected to the Houses of Parliament. The role of the masses is to sit back and enjoy the process, whether they approve or not. Why is he leaving? It is simply to fulfil the agreeement he made with Gordon Brown years ago the share the leadership role, bizarre as it may sound. Rumour has it, at the launching of the new style Labour Party, they made that pledge. Of course, some others will offer a very different explanation. This is the view that he has run out of ideas, and has become so unpopular in the country, and in his party; the time has come f...

THE NEW PRESIDENT OF FRANCE It was interesting watching the final round of the French elections. Once the other ten candidates were eliminated, and the battle became a straightforward 'right vs left' contest. I knew Madame Royal would have a very difficult time. Looking at Monsieur Sarkozy, it was quite obvoius that he had done all his homework. He had already eliminated all oppositon inside his party, so there were no side shows to take his audience away from the main stage. The stagemanaging of his every move, even including the contrived spontaniety of his supporters, impressesd the locales who were not accustomed to this sychronised presentation. Obviously there were times when he went too far, as the episode when he mounted a horse to demonstrate maybe his 'wild west prowess'. Madame Royal was not so lucky. As a candidate for the Socialists Party, she suffered from all the backstabbing that we have come to expect from the left in France. Even in the final round the...

The French Elections With almost a week to go to the French elections, there is still a lot of undecided voters. Two days ago, I returned from a long weekend in Paris. While there, I saw very few live election rallies. Maybe I was always in the wrong place. There was quite a lot said on televison, and the newspapers were full of articles. But I was quite amazed that that the general public seemed to carry own with their domestic existence, with little overt reaction to the election. I visited quite a few parks, and all the locals seemed to be enjoying was the very good weather. Now that the current French President, Monsieur Chirac, is finally making the best of his last days at the palace, it is time to decide where we stand on the present candidates, hoping to be the next President of France. Altogether, there are twelve candidates vying for the office of president. Of the twelve, only four stana real chance of becoming president, according to the polls. Until recently, most people w...

Mr. Bush Visits South America George Bush is continuing his well orchestrated visit to South America. He started out in Brazil where he was met by thousands of demonstrators who were determined to let him know how they felt about him. He and the Brazilian President, after talks, signed a commitment to work together to produce more ethanol, the current fashion in biofuel. The American president moved on to Uruguay, and Colombia where he received a mixed reception. He will later visit Guatemala and Mexico. Many see his visit here as propaganda in the form of convincing the South Americans of how much the US really cares, not just about individual countries, but for the entire region as well. But with Senor Chavez of Venezuela spreading his anti-imperial message in order to counter the presence of Bush, there is a general consensus that the the visit will be watched and noted by all, but that the impact will be minimal, or a lot less than the White House expects. Probably the most importa...

The Saguaro National Park I have always had a lifelong ambition of visiting the Saguaro National Park. And after years of procastination, I decided the time had come to make the trip. Less than two weeks ago, on February 8, I started on this venture, which would no doubt involve a lot of flying across the Atlantic. From London Gatwick it was a ten hour flight to Dallas Fort Worth. Then I had to hang around the airport for four long hours waiting for my connection to Tucson. Eventually at 6.35 pm we were on our way. After three hours I had arrived, and was heading for the Red Roof Hotel where I was staying. My initial response was that Tucson was very flat, and indeed, well laid out. But because of jetlag, that first night I was in a bit of daze, and I headed straight to bed, very early. Early the next morning I ventured on a quick tour of the city, and decided to leave the saguaro visit to the weekend. As I had sensed, the city was very widely laid out, a striking contrast to the mount...

IRAQ: THE CIVIL WAR LOOMS The daily consequences in Iraq seem to suggest to many, that the end is nigh. Or is it? The daily journalistic outpourings of news announce, that all Iraqis have the very last chance of saving their country. Most seem to forget the one hundred thousand foreign troops present. What is their purpose now? Should they stay? How do you feel about Iraq today? Please do a post.

UN TO US: CLOSE GUANTANAMO In a recently published 54 page report, the United Nations urged the United states to close the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. It is four years since the 'Gitmo' camp was opened. Few believed that that the camp would be around today. At one point the camp held well over five hundred detainees, or enemy combatants as the Americans will term it. Why were there? This was the grand idea of the US to detain people suspected of being in league with Al Qaeda. Most of them were rounded up in the war zones of Afghanistan, some under devious means, according to reports. They were supposed to provide the US with lots of intelligence with the inner workings of Al Qaeda, which would be useful in the American War on Terror. It is debatable with these goals are ever going to be realised. But the detaining of the men from over forty countries, continues. Over two hundred and fifty of the men have been returned to their respective countries in the last two years, unde...

NARCOTICS: CRIME AND PUNISHMENT Death Penalty for Two Australians Is the death penalty for two Australians to harsh a sentence? If you have not heard, on Tuesday a court in Indonesia sentenced to death two Australians for their part in smuggling heroin, in what they called the war against drugs. The case is not over, for there are still three defendants awaiting sentencing. But the sentencing of those convicted, brings into the open, once again, the harsh realities of the Anti-Drug establishment in countries in South East Asia. Do you agree with the sentence? Do you have a different view of how to deal with drug pushers? Please post a response?

Soccer: Soca Warriors Head to Germany The recent qualification of Trinidad and Tobago, for the World Cup to be held in Germany next year, is major milestone for such a small country. They are certain to be the smallest nation represented in this major event. With a population of just over a million people, the locals have every reason to celebrate, because unlike most large countries, attending major international events like these, are a rare event. To put it bluntly, it was only the second time in the last twenty years that the twin islands had a chance to qualify. The other time was on the eve of the 1990 World Cup when they just failed to qualify. For small countries the world of professional sport is a very limited option. A few manage to take their skills abroad, and with experience and determination gradually enter the big league. But for most sportspeople, this rarely happens. Sports for most smaller countries including the Caribbean, is tied to amateur structures which rar...

RIOTS IN THE FRENCH REPUBLIC BON MONSIEUR: The aggressive attitude of Monsieur Sarkozy to the rioters will only make matters worse. The riots in France are not only about wanton destruction, but also about a cry for help. The rioters seem to sense that the ideals of the republic are false, if not dishonest. They see no liberty, no equality or no fraternity. They have become disillusioned with French society, and all that is happening around them. Therefore caught in their emotive rage, they feel the need to lash out destructively, causing damage wherever they can. It is very easy to blame scapegoats, or foreigners for the breakdown law and order. But this would simply obscure the reality of French society today. Whatever the politicians pretend, the riots have presented another view of France to the world, and no amount of whitewash will change that. France has to look at the Republic, and consider how far its ideals benefit all members of the republic. Ask any ethnic in France, ra...

Michael Jackson: On The Move The trial of Michael Jackson earlier this year reminded us all of how tough life is. Once presumed to be the world's greatest superstar, and proclaimed 'the King of Pop,' he had to face the indignity of a sordid and soul-destroying trial, which must have pushed him close to the borders of insanity. But it was all his own fault, I can hear you say. I am not sure that I agree with you. I think some of it was his own fault. But a lot of it seem to occur because of his celebrity status. The story of MJ can be written in many ways, but whatever the chapters, the start will always be same. Little Michael, and his four brothers leave Gary, Indiana, and becomes a success story. That success story presents 'The Jackson Five' not just to United States of America, but also to the rest of the world, making good music to be enjoyed by all. Eventually MJ leaves the group for his solo outing, and to many, delivers a virtuoso performance on the first a...

Harriet Miers: Rise and Fall How quickly things change in politics. One moment it was all Harriet, Harriet Miers was everywhere. Harriet Miers with the President; Harriet Miers meeting and conferring with senators; newspapers and televison were overflowing with stories. And then just as suddenly, she was gone, pushed out by the very conservative groups that she was supposed to represent. Was it too much to expect the lady to be given an opportunity to present her case for being a Supreme Court Justice? It looked that way. Many saw it as a battle of ideology. Never mind her qualifications and experience, was she the right conservative for the job? And the answer to that question was simply no. Was it sexism? Few would want to even discuss this angle. In these times, it is quite fashionable to pretend that true equality has arrived, and that racism and sexism no longer exist. Others highlighted her lack of experience on the bench, as if that was the only reason to oppose her. Yet even th...

PERESKIAS Pereskias are really not very well-known plants. Even among succulent lovers, they are certainly not highly prized. The fact they are a significant part of the Cataceae group still does not reward them special attention. Mention pereskias to the general public, and they would probably stare at you in puzzlement. They may look like roses, but in the eye of masses they remain unknown. Often, botanists will tell you, that they are usually found only in botanical gardens. Yet, they serve as a significant starting point for the debate about the origin of cacti. For some, these are the first cacti, before evolution and mutation took its course. The real reason for their obscurity may have more to do with the fact they need highly a tropical climate to survive. Without warmth and sunlight, they cannot flourish. And therefore, in a temperate climate you would never see them at their best. Yet, they are interesting plants, and they are some of my favourite cacti. The fact that they a...

HARD ON DRUGS The recent public debate, about whether an aspiring British politician should declare publicly, whether he used drugs in his earlier days, beggars a question. What attitude do you take to drugs? Do you smoke cigarettes? Would you be willing to admit publicly whether or not you take hard drugs? Are you someone who would commit to prison anyone caught smoking marijuana, even for the first time? Do you draw a distinction between say marijuana, and cocaine? Are you someone who generally conform to the dictum of law? Or do you regularly question laws which are legal, but you believe should be scrapped? And what about alcohol, what attitude do you take to people drinking alcohol? Of course, it is legal, but do you realise that alcohol probably causes much more damage to our lives than so called hard drugs. My attitude to drugs goes across the board. All drugs can be destructive, and this is some thing that needs remembering. Even approved prescriptive drugs can be dangerous, an...

Is War Inevitable? Consider the history of mankind. Consider the evolution of nations, which in many cases may have been decided by war. Consider the technological advantages, and the sophistication of the twenty-first century in which some of us may live. I ask the question, is war still inevitable? Why do countries still see war as a way of resolving conflicts? You tell me why, or why not.

British Politics Today Politics is sometimes difficult to comprehend. Or should I say that politicians are difficult to comprehend. It took one little incident at the Labour Party conference to expose them for what they really are. In case you are not aware, during the Foreign Secretary's speech on why the country went to war in Iraq, an eighty two year old labour party member shouted, "Nonsense. You know that is a lie." He was then manhandled, taken out of his seat, and then escorted out of the hall. Later, when he tried to return to the building he was detained under the new anti-terror laws. The actions of the labour party are typical of politics today. Gone are the moments when there are actual debates about policy. Often, policies are now decided by a small clique, or even in some cases by a single individual, and the rank and file are forced to accept it. More disturbing are the slick media presentations of the policies, often to give the impression that they have c...

A House is Not a Home I know quite a lot of people to whom their home is everything. For a start, in selecting a home, they insist the property should represent everything they stand for. The more expensive the better, even if in some cases it may be far beyond their budget. Home making today has become a competitive game in one upmanship. The constant moving, with the focus on the social ladder, or the ever so important improvements, to make the property that more attractive, has become standard practice everywhere. The home seems no longer a focus for the family, but a grand investment in the real estate bubble. Yet, there are many who would insist the house is still the main focus of family life. But I don't accept this, or to put it bluntly, this is not what I see being practised. What I see more and more today, is the house is used as a staging ground for all our activities, business, leisure or otherwise. Of course, it is still probably the place where we spend a great deal o...